Transcription by Yumna Moosa

The death toll from rain-related incidents over the past month has risen to 147 as monsoon rains continue to affect Pakistan, especially in the port city of Karachi. The national disaster management authority said 88 children were amongst those who had died as a result. The rains have also damaged homes, roads, bridges and power stations. Dost Muhammad Barrech, a research associate at the Institute of strategic studies, talks to Radio Islam about the matter.

Dost Muhammed explains, “this is not the first time (the country has experienced something like this), if you [look] at the country over decades, Pakistan is considered one of the most vulnerable countries in the world as far as climate change is concerned. Pakistan is also the seventh most vulnerable countries due to the climate change. ” He continues to say that many factors have also contributed to this further than climate change, such as disaster risk and poor urban planning.

The research associate added that the “government has been trying but unfortunately been failing (to assist thus far) because prior to the monsoon season people were not aware of the foreseen flood.” Looking forward, more monsoon showers are still expected.

The full interview can be found on Radio Islam’s SoundCloud.